The Trianii Rangers
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Galaxy at War See also: GaW Military Units The Trianii often are mistaken for similar felinoid Species such as the Togorians and the Tinnell; those who make this error underestimate the incredible speed and agility of the Trianii. By the time an enemy realizes that they are facing an angry Trianii, it's a good bet that they've already suffered a mortal injury. This physical prowess, a matter of pride among the Trianii, is prized nowhere more than in the ranks of the elite Trianii Rangers. The Trianii Rangers date back thousands of years, tracing its roots to a primitive frontier corps that protected landowners as they tamed the serpent-infested forests of Trian. By the time Trian had established a planetwide government, the Rangers were an above-the-law police force with the authority to execute suspected criminals on sight. The age of space travel prevented the Rangers from becoming a tyrannical junta; the need to protect Trian from outside invaders took precedence over everything else. As the Trianii established colonies on the nearby planets of Brochiib, Ekibo, Fibuli, Pypin, Monic, and Perin, The Trianii Rangers grew in size in order to patrol the Hyperspace lanes between the colonies and the homeworld. Piloting RX4 Patrol Ships and Kiree Starfighters, members of the Rangers beat back incursions by the Kwapi Pirates, the maggot-cyborgs of Hydra, and the Ugors, a meddlesome Species that simply wanted to collect scrap metal. With a noble cause and the blessings of Trian's many gods, the Rangers became a legendary force within the tiny Trianii Empire. Its dominance ended when The Corporate Sector Authority- a rapacious commercial entity established by the Empire- extended its influence into their region of the Tingel Arm. The proud Trianii Rangers could not let this outrage stand, but neither could it drive out all the CSA landing craft. The CSA annexed Fibuli and reinforced it with Espo troops, and the Rangers mobilized into a tooth-and-nail conflict. Amused executives at the CSA suddenly took the matter more seriously when The Trianii Rangers sent back the severed heads of Espo officers. The war between the CSA and the outnumbered Trianii dragged on for years, kept alive by the Rangers' hit-and-fade tactics. Many captured Rangers were held in suspended-animation at Stars' End prison on Mytus VII. A jailbreak from Stars' End, followed by the Empire's collapse in 4 ABY, brought an end to hostilities with the CSA. The Trianii Rangers subsequently oversaw the colonization of 19 new worlds. Methods The Trianii Rangers are an independent space force answerable to no one but voluntarily subordinate to the ruling Yu'nar Tribunals on Trian. Similar in some respects to The Sector Rangers, The Trianii Rangers are essentially a guerilla space force that is adept in hit-and-fade strikes launched from the cover of asteroid belts and planetary rings. Ranger units habitually execute risky, pinpoint Hyperspace jumps right into the center of enemy convoys. Ion Cannons are often used on a first pass, allowing the Ranger attackers to disable an enemy craft and puncture its hull with lasers on a second pass, venting the targeted ship's atmosphere to space. If outgunned, Rangers flee- better to fight another day. The Ranger navy lacks Capital Ships and fighter carriers, relying instead on one-person Kiree Starfighters and small-crewed RX4 Patrol Ships. Members of the Rangers live aboard such vessels, enduring long deployments between resupplies at the secret Ranger network of asteroid and moon bases. Most Trianii Rangers assigned to the same RX4 Patrol Ship are family. After CSA warships start capturing Ranger vessels and locking their pilots in the Stars' End prison, the Ranger ships are equipped with "Hyperspace Ripcords" to trigger an emergency blind jump. Pilots who use this escape sometimes die in collisions with mass shadows, but many are recovered by their comrades after a few days adrift. The CSA's annexation of Fibuli forces the formerly free-roaming Ranges to commit to a sustained campaign to unseat its enemy. It harries the CSA's blockade from outposts in the system's comet cloud and lands insurgent teams to harass CSA Espo troops on the ground. Ranger planetary commandos prefer close combat because their agility makes them natural martial artists. The ranged weapons in their possession are frequently crude and unreliable, having been purchased secondhand on the smugglers' market. Ranger commandos have an affinity for Grenades and are experts at camouflage, particularly in the wooded environments found on Trian, Fibuli, and other Trianii colonies. All Trianii have needle-sharp claws and prehensile tails, and members of the Rangers often fasten blades to their tail tips. Ranger commandos are among the few Trianii who wear Light Armor; most members of the Species don't wear any clothing at all. Trianii culture is highly spiritual, expressed though the sacred arts of dance, athletics, and song, but members of the Rangers are less sentimental and share a hard-bitten awareness of the grim reality of battle. Most members of the Rangers ascribe to the gloomy philosophies of Kunik, the goddess of bitter retribution and swift death. Generally, Ranger commandos encountered in the greater galaxy are outcasts. These individuals value adventure and personal glory more than the security of family and homeworld, and they might be bounty hunters, trackers, or pilots for hire. Missions The Trianii Rangers are not a group of mercenaries. Despite its autonomy from its world's central government, it remains fiercely devoted to the protection of Trianii Space. Prior to the rise of the Empire, The Trianii Rangers were the scourge of Tingel Arm star pirates and the Hiitite Ravagers (The raiding force of the aggressive local Hiitians). Combat was based exclusively in space, rarely spilling outside the borders of Trianii territory. The Rangers cared only about chasing off intruders, and did the jobs so well that outsiders never gained a foothold on Trianii worlds. The coming of The Corporate Sector Authority, however, forced the Rangers to split its ranks between ground commandos, dedicated to sabotage and assassination, and an outgunned space force that executed lightning raids and disappeared into secret bolt-holes. After the Battle of Endor, The Trianii Rangers became even more paranoid as its people expanded into new systems. "Shoot first, ask questions later" is the Trianii attitude toward newcomers when they think they hold the advantage. In the case of a large enemy force, the Rangers' command assembles task groups or battle fleets by pulling naval units from the surrounding trisector. The Trianii suspicion of outsiders has effectively eliminated Trian's galactic trade. Because its armaments and equipment are often out of date, the Rangers constantly hones its combat skills to remain competitive against more sophisticated foes. Rank Structure The organization of The Trianii Rangers mirrors the ruling Yu'nar Triumvirates on Trian. Three Punctionos head the Rangers, their role roughly equivalent to that of Naval Admirals. Each Punctiono commands Ranger forces within a third of Trianii Space, an area known as a trisector. Each trisector has an identical command setup. All of the ships within the trisector make up a single battle fleet. Groupings of 50 to 70 vessels are known as task groups and are headed by a Commodore-level officer called a Pyorn. Flotillas are smaller groupings of vessels headed by a Captain or Sinth. The ships of the Ranger fleet are unusual in that none of them is Capital-class. RX4 Patrol Ships have crews of four and can double as troops carriers for 12 to 20 tightly packed warriors. The Kiree Starfighter is a single-person Starfighter deployed in pairs. The Trianii also operate a number of captured freighters, including common Corellian designs such as the YT series and the Corellian Action VI Transport. A new Ranger recruit is likely assigned a Gunner position aboard a patrol boat. A promotion can lead to a pilot's role on a similar class of vessel. A pilot who proves unusually skilled wins the right to pilot a Kiree Starfighter. During the Fibuli War with the CSA, new recruits often became ground soldiers, serving in groups of three to 10 under the leadership of a veteran forest-warfare commando. Because The Trianii Rangers are the self-run military force of an impoverished culture, its members enjoy few perks. Homebrew intoxicants and musical instruments are the most popular distractions at base, enjoyed by rookies and Punctionos alike. Ranger Vehicles See also: Vehicles